03-13-2007, 03:45 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Monk MP breaks down in parliament </b>
Reuters | New DelhiÂ
A BJP MP broke down in copious tears in parliament on Monday, saying his arrest by the Uttar Pradesh government on charges of disturbing religious peace had resulted in threats to his life.
<b>"I want protection. If this house cannot protect me, I will leave parliament," </b>said Yogi Adityanath, a Hindu monk and Lok Sabha member, wiping tears from his face and sniffling in a rare outburst of emotion in the chambers.
"I have renounced the world to serve the people," added Adityanath, 34, a three-time MP of the opposition BJP, dressed in Hindu saffron robes and shawl, his voice breaking.
<b>"I have left my family, my mother and father and now I am being made out to be a criminal,"</b> he said, wiping his tears with a saffron handkerchief, as a fellow BJP MP comforted him.
Adityanath was arrested in January for allegedly disturbing religious peace in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. The arrest came after rioting between Hindus and Muslims left two people dead and dozens injured in Gorakhpur district, an area represented by Adityanath. He was let off last month by a local court, because the allegation lacks evidence.
Adityanath said the ruling Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh was targeting him to gain political mileage ahead of polls next month.
"False cases have been lodged against me to frame me," said Adityanath, sporting a red vermillion mark on his forehead, as another MP wiped his tears with a handkerchief.
Speaker Somnath Chatterjee said he would ask the federal home ministry to investigate.
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Reuters | New DelhiÂ
A BJP MP broke down in copious tears in parliament on Monday, saying his arrest by the Uttar Pradesh government on charges of disturbing religious peace had resulted in threats to his life.
<b>"I want protection. If this house cannot protect me, I will leave parliament," </b>said Yogi Adityanath, a Hindu monk and Lok Sabha member, wiping tears from his face and sniffling in a rare outburst of emotion in the chambers.
"I have renounced the world to serve the people," added Adityanath, 34, a three-time MP of the opposition BJP, dressed in Hindu saffron robes and shawl, his voice breaking.
<b>"I have left my family, my mother and father and now I am being made out to be a criminal,"</b> he said, wiping his tears with a saffron handkerchief, as a fellow BJP MP comforted him.
Adityanath was arrested in January for allegedly disturbing religious peace in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. The arrest came after rioting between Hindus and Muslims left two people dead and dozens injured in Gorakhpur district, an area represented by Adityanath. He was let off last month by a local court, because the allegation lacks evidence.
Adityanath said the ruling Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh was targeting him to gain political mileage ahead of polls next month.
"False cases have been lodged against me to frame me," said Adityanath, sporting a red vermillion mark on his forehead, as another MP wiped his tears with a handkerchief.
Speaker Somnath Chatterjee said he would ask the federal home ministry to investigate.
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